Desperation for 2024 gov poll responsible for Ondo crisis – Ex-Speaker

Mr Bamidele Oloyeloogun is the immediate former Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly. He speaks about the lingering political crisis in the state in this interview with PETER DADA

Ondo State is not settled currently, things are not moving coupled with allegations, and agitations everywhere, particularly among the members of the All Progressives Congress, who are in government, what do you think can be done?

Thank God for the recent meeting with President Bola Tinubu in Abuja. The best thing that can happen that will move Ondo State forward is that everyone should do his or her work as it should be done. Everybody should leave his or her political ambition, ambition is ruining the state.

I told someone recently that you do not know if you will be alive tomorrow, you are making different plans ahead of 2024. Only God owns time and season and only God puts someone in a position. Look at what happened in Kogi a few years ago, the winner of the election was not sworn in before he passed away, the person who didn’t even think of getting to the position got there.

You see, not having the fear of God is the cause of all these crises. They should let peace reign. Let there be representation, everywhere, as supposed to be. We are lagging in all areas. A lot of things are happening in Abuja now that we are not part of because we don’t have representatives there.

We are all human and nobody is perfect. There is no one who cannot fall sick. Let the deputy governor, pending the time that the governor will come back, let him continue to do his job actively as he is supposed to.

Now that we are praying for our governor to recover quickly is not the time that some people will be waging war against one another.

What you are saying is the political ambition ahead of the 2024 governorship election is the cause of all these crises in Ondo?

Yes, it is about ambition. I want to be this and I want to be that. About a year ago, nothing like this happened. Ondo State needs to come together. The stakeholders need to have a very good meeting. The party chairman should organise those leaders, who are forming different groups. Let the chairman of the party call the elders, and let them come together and discuss.

As they have gone to Abuja, may God not let us be dishonoured, if the President didn’t interfere in the issue of the state, won’t they settle it?

We can do the settlement ourselves, many states are having one issue or the other and they settled their things themselves. When was the last time the elders’ forum met in the state?

The chairman of the party has a lot to do.

If we look at it, ambitions are causing a lot in Ondo State. Like I said earlier only God owns the ambitions. Ambition is like a man holding a cutlass and chasing two rats, if he is not careful, he will lose everything.

This time around, our party needs to come together and resolve issues and be one. Bring elders together and be one. Also, we should have the fear of God. If the meeting is monthly, we will get there and pray, things will be better. There’s a need for the chairman to do that, as a matter of urgency, the chairman of the party is the only one who can do that.

Mr Governor is the one that is doing it before but he’s not around now. The chairman of the party has the authority to call anyone. He should not put sentiment into it. If not, it will end up in failure.

And the enemies are searching, if you give them a chance, that will be a problem if they (the opposition) take advantage of what is happening to us. So the chairman of the party has a lot to do, the elders like Baba Akinyelure have a lot to do, and the commissioners, and other elders in the state have a lot to do too.

You are saying the party chairman should call the elders for a meeting. Don’t you think the matter has gone beyond them?

No, it has not gone beyond the resolution of the elders. If the elders meet and they tell themselves the truth, it will be better. At the first meeting, they may fight because if they didn’t fight, they should disagree to agree or else, there would be nothing to achieve.

But I’ll tell the chairman the truth, I’ll say the truth so that the future and prosperity will be there to judge me. So I believe if the chairman can call a meeting, everything will be alright.

As a former Speaker of the Assembly, how do you relate with the present lawmakers, particularly on the lingering political crises?

I have spoken with the (incumbent) speaker as a father-to-son. I called the majority leader. In all things we do, the directive of God is very important. Natural intelligence is very important as well, then, someone should not say he or she wants to get rich, as a political officeholder.

This is equally very important. If someone wants to get rich at all costs, he or she will be exposed, and he or she will not be relevant later in life. I’m not as rich as many other politicians but I have rest of mind. Someone who will spend six years in Ondo State will have to be prepared and will have to sleep on mountains as I do because many people say I’m diabolical but if you get to my house now, it’s built around a mountain, I can stay at Alagbaka (GRA)but I want a place that I will have peace. Someone should always follow God’s directives in whatever we’re doing.

As a pastor, you should have time to pray with members of the Assembly for the state just like the last administration did for the state. What do you think about that?

As you have mentioned it, I will raise it. I’ve mentioned it once. You know there’s a saying that a prophet doesn’t have honour in his town.

I made the move when they resumed. I told them that we should commit their beginning in God’s hands. They said they would organise the prayer. Up till today, they have not called me.

I went to Baba Akinyelure in Abuja, the man was surprised that I came to meet him because of Ondo State. I said he was the oldest person in the party and he should organise a prayer for the whole state, and we should do it at the Governor’s House, all the elders should be there.

I can organise the men of God that come to my place. I do this thing every second Thursday, and I give thanks to God and it has been working for me. Then, there’s one I do once a year, and that is in January, I’ll go to the mountain on the 17th of January and come down on the 21st. It will be a marathon, no eating or drinking, how will God not answer my prayers? He must hear me. I’m the son of an Ifa worshipper, I became a pastor, who calls God’s name.